Once again, there is a lot to get excited about the Canadian women’s mountain biking team. On May 24, Haley Smith of Markham, Ontario won her first World Cup medal of her career with a bronze medal at a race in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic.
Smith posted a third place time of one hour, 28 minutes and 13 seconds. She reached the podium by three seconds over Sina Frei of Switzerland, who finished in fourth place with a time of one hour, 28 minutes and 16 seconds. Kate Courtney of the United States won the gold medal with a time of one hour, 27 minutes and 31 seconds. Rebecca Ellen McConnell of the United States won the silver medal with a time of one hour, 28 minutes and seven seconds.
Smith meanwhile is continuing the tradition of excellence when it comes to Canadian female mountain bikers. Over the last 23 years there have been three Canadian Olympic medalists in mountain biking. They are Alison Sydor of Edmonton, Alberta (silver at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta), Marie-Helene Premont of Quebec City, Quebec (silver at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens), and Catharine Pendrel of Fredericton, New Brunswick (bronze at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro).
Smith is currently one of three elite women’s mountain bikers. She is joined by Pendrel and Emily Batty of Brooklin, Ontario, the two-time world championship bronze medalist and 2015 Pan American Games gold medalist.
